What the First First Couple Bequeathed America
George and Martha Washington’s Close Partnership Helped Them Through Rebellion, War, and Even the Presidency
One of the most revealing spaces at Mount Vernon, George and Martha Washington’s home in Virginia, is a bare attic bedroom. Martha retreated here after George’s death in 1799. Without him, she would not occupy the elegant bedchamber they had so long shared. Grief made this tough, capable woman give up her will to live. She died, still in that attic retreat, a few years later.
Standing at the threshold of that little room, 10 years ago, I wondered at the strength of Martha’s feeling. I had given little prior thought …
